


I'll Be There To Hold You

by De_Marvel_Bunny



Series: Tony Stark & Co. [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Panic Attacks, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Feels, Peter Parker Has a Family, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), There's A Tag For That, Tony Stark Angst, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Has Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Stark-centric, how are there literal tags for this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-23
Updated: 2019-02-23
Packaged: 2019-11-04 14:32:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17899931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/De_Marvel_Bunny/pseuds/De_Marvel_Bunny
Summary: Tony startled as the sound of crashing was heard and tools fell down on the ground."Shit, Mr. Stark, I'm sorry,""I'm sorry,"Tony shook his head, trying to shake off Peter's terrified voice as he turned to dust in his arms."That's- Uh, that's okay," he managed."Mr. Stark," echoed in his head. "I- I don't feel so good..."ORThe one where Peter and Tony are working and Peter triggers a huge-ass panic attack. You're welcome.





	I'll Be There To Hold You

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so my friend told me she needed a Tony Stark angst fic before school on Monday, so I took it upon myself to write an angsty Tony Stark fic in the middle of the night.
> 
> If it's shit-- blame her.

“So, I was thinking,” Peter rambled on beside him in the lab as Tony made some adjustments to the Spider-Man suit, listening with half an ear but making sure to catch every word. “The web shooters have been acting up lately. But, instead of just a fix, maybe we could add some-”

The sound of a light crash and objects falling to the ground startled the engineer from his work, his hands slipping, causing a slight shock to travel up his arm as he touched one of the loose wires. He grunted in pain as he quickly retracted his arm.

“Oh, shit, Mr. Stark, I’m sorry-” Peter was quick to apologize, picking up the stuff he’d dropped. “I didn’t see where I was putting my stuff and I didn’t mean to startle you-”

_“I’m sorry…”_

“No, that’s- uh, that’s fine,” Tony cleared his throat, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. “It’s okay, I’m okay,” _you’re okay_

_“Mr. Stark, please,”_

_You’re okay,_

_“Please, Mr. Stark…”_

_You’re alright-_

“Are you sure?” Peter’s concerned voice sounded again. It sounded so small, why did it sound so small? “That looked like it hurt…”

Tony managed to flash him a smile as muscle memory took over.

“Well, I’ve survived worse than a little electrical shock, now haven’t I?”

“Well, yes, but-”

_“Mr. Stark, please… I don’t- I don’t know what-”_

“Really, do you think me so fragile that a little shock’s gonna kill me?”

“Well, _no,_ but it might have hurt-”

“Really, it’ll take a lot more than _that_ to get rid of me,”

At this point, Tony wasn’t even listening to Peter anymore. He just spits out his usual sarcasm until Peter backed off. It’s what he’d always done, and it had never failed him yet. Why should now be any different?

_“I- I don’t feel so good…”_

He barely noticed as Peter crouched beside him- when had he sat down?- and laid a careful hand on his shoulder.

“Are you okay, Mr. Stark?”

_“You’re alright,”_

Big, brown eyes looked at him in concern.

“Of course,” Tony responded on autopilot. “Always,”

He shivered slightly- had the room gotten colder?- and made move to get up again, but his limbs were shaky and he found himself unable to push himself up. He pressed a hand to his chest- where did the oxygen go? Why is breathing so hard? Breathing shouldn’t be hard, there’s enough oxygen here…

But no, this is not Earth. This is not his planet. This is not _his_ oxygen that’s running out.

But it’s running out.

“Mr. Stark?” Peter called out again, heavy concern lacing his voice. “What’s wrong?” His voice sounded so far away…

_Did he leave me?_

“Mr. Stark?” His small voice seemed to move away from him.

 _Don’t go, Peter,_ his mind screamed. _Don’t leave me alone. Not you, too._

He slumped against the wall- or was it a rock? He couldn’t tell. His vision was swimming, he couldn’t see straight. A blurry image moved in front of him, and he wanted to reach out. But his arms wouldn’t respond. His legs wouldn’t move. The air wouldn’t enter his lungs like it was supposed to. His breaths came in short, strained gasps.

“FRIDAY, what’s going on? I don’t understand- what’s happening to him?!”

_“Please, Mr. Stark, I don’t know what’s happening…”_

_“Please, I don’t understand- I don’t understand…”_

Tony choked on the dusty air, his hands gripping the sand on the ground. He angled his head up. Or down, he couldn’t tell anymore. His vision was going black at the sides, and he couldn’t tell left from right as his head lolled against the surface at his back- the only thing keeping him upright at this point. He felt his eyes drooping.

“No, Mr. Stark. _Please_ ,”

_“Please, Mr. Stark!”_

“Please, you have to stay awake!”

Peter sounded desperate now.

“I- I don’t know what to do,”

Someone- a female voice, he barely managed to register- answered him. There was more talking, but Tony couldn’t hear it anymore. Blood was rushing in his ears, the last screams of a terrified boy consuming all his thoughts.

_“Mr. Stark? I- I don’t feel so good…”_

“You’re alright,” he just barely managed to choke out. But the cries continued.

_He’s not alright, he’s going to die. He’s dying- Peter is dying. Peter is dying and I can’t stop it._

\--

Peter watched in concern at his mentor.

“Are you sure?” he questioned. “That looked like it hurt-”

“Well, I’ve survived worse than a little electrical shock, now haven’t I?” Tony shot back, his usual press-grin in place. But his gaze was off as if he was looking at something only he could see.

“Well, yes, but-”

“Really, do you think me so fragile that a little shock’s gonna kill me?”

Peter raised his brows.

“Well, _no,_ but it might have hurt-”

“Really, it’ll take a lot more than _that_ to get rid of me,”

Peter wanted to respond, ask him what was really going on when he caught sight of Tony’s hands. They were shaking- and _hard._ Actually, now that he was really looking, his mentor’s entire body was shaking, sweat appearing on his forehead.

Peter was about to call out again, when Tony swayed on his feet, hitting the wall with his shoulder and sliding down, eyes wide and gaze distant.

Peter didn’t hesitate to crouch down beside him, placing a tender hand on his shoulder.

“Are you okay, Mr. Stark?” he asked softly, every ounce of self-control put into keeping his voice calm.

“Of course,” came the strained answer, brown eyes blinking dazedly up at him. “Always,” the man practically wheezed the last part as his breathing came in what must have been painful gasps as if his body was simply refusing the oxygen the room provided. A hand came up to clutch his chest, right at the spot Peter knew used to house the arc reactor.

“Mr. Stark?” He called again, not knowing what else to do. His voice rose in pitch as panic seeped through. Tony didn’t respond. “What’s wrong?”

He didn’t get any response besides an agonized and _terrified_ sounding whine, almost like a cry and Peter’s heart clenched in both sympathy and fear. Because in front of him, the strongest man he’d ever met- which said a lot, because he had met _all_ the Avengers- was a shivering and shaking mess, slumped against the wall of the workshop with sweat dripping down his face as he gasped in attempt to get air into his lungs, the most terrible sounds emitting from his throat.

“FRIDAY, what’s going on? I don’t understand- what’s happening to him?!”

He was full on panicking at this point, no longer even remotely trying to keep calm.

“Boss seems to be having a panic attack, Mr. Parker,” the AI responded, and thinking back to it later, she too sounded panicked. “I suggest you calm him down as his vitals are rising to dangerous levels,”

“What am I supposed to do?!” He practically yelled in panic, his hands hovering by Tony’s form as if afraid to touch him. He saw Tony’s head lolling dangerously, his whole body going limper by the second. Peter watched in horror when he saw the shaking man struggling to keep his eyes open.

“No, Mr. Stark. _Please._ You have to stay awake!”

“Peter, do _not_ let him fall asleep,” FRIDAY warned, her voice strained.

“I- I don’t know what to do…” Peter muttered hopelessly.

“I- I don’t either, Mr. Parker…” FRIDAY said, sounding defeated.

“You’re… Alright,”

A small voice muttered out. Peter’s eyes widened in realization as he heard his mentor say those two words, seemingly painfully so. Immediately, he moved close to the man’s side, taking a shaking and sweating hand in his.

“Mr- _Tony_ ,” he corrected himself, forcing his voice to sound calm and reassuring. “It’s okay, I swear. I’m right here. I’m okay, Mr. Stark,”

He placed a warm, gentle hand on the man’s chest, exactly on the tender spot where the arc reactor was removed.

“You can breathe, Tony. I promise you, _you can breathe_ ,”

He overexaggerated his own breathing for the mechanic to match. His heart picked up in speed when Tony gave it a hesitant try, gasping in a lungful of air. Immediately, he started swallowing in as much air as he could, coughing with the sudden quantity of it. Peter got an arm around the man’s torso when he threatened to fall with the sheer force that shook his body. He kept whispering soft words, his voice more getting more hopeful as Tony came back to awareness.

“That’s right, I’m here. Just breathe,”

“P- peter…” Tony choked out, and Peter felt like he was going to cry.

“Yes, yes- I’m here. I’m here, Tony. I’m right here, and I’m not gonna leave, I promise,”

It felt like his heart was going to swell out of his chest as he felt his hero lean into him, a hand curling in his shirt. Peter buried his head in his mentor’s hair, taking in the familiar smell of _safe,_ and _home_.

“Peter…” Tony whispered.

“Yeah, it’s me, Tony. It’s me,”

They stayed like that for a few minutes, both of them taking their time to calm down.

“Finally called me Tony,” a voice croaked weakly, slightly muffled from his curled up position. “Gonna use that against you, Underoos,”

Peter chuckled wetly, only just noticing the tears of relief running down his face as he tightened his grip on the man in his arms, holding him close.

“Yeah, you do that,”

The body in his arms suddenly went limp, telling Peter that the shaken man had finally passed out from exhaustion.

“Dad,”


End file.
